PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR

Dr. Akbari obtained his Ph.D. from Brigitta Stockinger’s laboratory in the Division of Molecular Immunology at the National Institute for Medical Research in UK. He performed postdoctoral work at Stanford University and in 2004 became Assistant Professor of Allergy and Immunology at Harvard Medical School. In 2008, Dr. Akbari joined the Department of Molecular Microbiology and Immunology, USC Keck School of Medicine, where he is currently Professor of Immunology. The objective of Dr. Akbari’s laboratory is to characterize and define acquired and innate immune responses at mucosal surfaces; investigate the mechanisms underlying regulation of these responses and determine means by which those responses can be specifically manipulated. Also the goal of his research group is to understand the regulation and function of type 2 immune responses in metabolic health and disease. Dr. Akbari is a recipient of several national and international grants and awards such as: American Lung Association fellowship award, the American Lung Association Research Grant, The Pharmacia award for the best research in the field of Immunology, Henning Loewenstein Research award for the excellent research in the field of lung inflammation. He is also a recipient of the Eleanor and Miles Shore prestigious grant from Harvard Medical School and several other grants from the National Institute of Health. He is currently serves as Associate Editor of several journals and also serves as reviewer for several NIH and non-NIH study sections.